Durbin calls for congressional hearings on Trump immigration and refugee bans

Highlights Urgent Need for Independent Congress to Provide Oversight of Trump Administration’s Immigration Policies

WASHINGTON—U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, is calling for hearings on President Donald Trump’s executive orders cracking down on immigrant communities and banning all refugees, immigrants, and visitors from seven Muslim-majority countries.

“These executive orders, which have dramatic implications for our immigration system, are inconsistent with America’s heritage as a nation of immigrants and a safe haven for those fleeing persecution. The Subcommittee has an urgent responsibility to address the serious questions that have been raised about the legality, efficacy, and morality of these orders,” wrote Senator Durbin in a letter to Immigration Subcommittee Chairman John Cornyn (R-TX).

Durbin also stressed the need for an independent Congress to provide rigorous oversight of the President’s executive orders. Holding these hearings, he argued, will honor this duty and follow the precedent set by Republican committee members during the Obama Administration.

“We must show President Trump that Congress is an independent branch of the federal government that will not be intimidated by his bullying behavior and immediately begin hearings on his immigration and refugee executive orders. These executive orders fall squarely under the jurisdiction of this Subcommittee and there is ample precedent for the Subcommittee holding hearings to examine executive actions on immigration,” he continued.

Full text of Senator Durbin’s letter is available here and below:

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